Victoria Taylor’s tragic final footsteps have been revealed following the discovery of a body yesterday – three weeks after the young mother went missing.
Ms Taylor, 34, was last seen on Monday, September 30, at her home in Malton, North Yorkshire, where she lived with her fiancé Matthew Williams and their two-year-old daughter.
She left her home at around 9am with Matthew and her daughter. She was Facetiming siblings.
The family then left to visit his parents. Ms Taylor later left his parents’ house and did not return, her sister Heidi Baker said. She is believed to have been heading towards a community library.
Ms Taylor was captured on CCTV buying a bottle of Dr Pepper and a bottle of water at a nearby BP garage at 11.35am and at Malton bus station at 11.53am.
The last sighting of Ms Taylor, who was originally from Huddersfield, was at 12.30pm when she walked past a children’s play park before joining a path running alongside the River Derwent.
The search for the young mother seemingly ended in tragedy yesterday after detectives, who have spent the last three weeks searching for Ms Taylor, announced that they had found a body in the Derwent, close to where she was last seen.
Victoria Taylor left home around 9am on September 30 and was seen on CCTV at a BP garage at 11.35am. She was seen inside the garage wearing a camo hat and a Adidas coat
Ms Taylor shared a sweet photo of her cuddling her two-year-old daughter days before she went missing
In another photo of the pair, Ms Taylor is seen playing with her daughter on a swing in a playground
And in this heartwarming photo, the mother and daughter are seen feeding the ducks in a park
It comes as a body was found in the search for Ms Taylor (pictured) who was last seen at her home in Malton at 9am on September 30 prompting a huge search operation
She was last spotted wearing blue jeans, a Adidas original puffer jacket with white stripes down the sleeves and a grey Jack Wills hooded jumper.
Police quickly ruled out any suggestion of a third party being involved in her disappearance and concentrated their search on a stretch of water close to where some of the mother’s belongings, including a rucksack and a camouflage cap, were found on a riverbank.
On September 19, 11 days before she went missing, the care home nurse shared a poignant photo on Facebook of her cuddling her two-year-old daughter.
Ms Taylor and her daughter could be seen smiling on what appeared to be a holiday, with a swimming pool and sun loungers in the background.
Ms Taylor’s fiancé had previously revealed the couple were due to get married, but had not set a date, having just returned from their first family holiday in Majorca.
Friends had commented on the photo of Ms Taylor and her daughter, with one saying ‘Such a cutie, lovely pic’ and another writing ‘So sweet!’.
Other photos shared on Ms Taylor’s Facebook paint the picture of a caring mother who can be seen lovingly gazing at her daughter, playing with her on a playground swing, and feeding the ducks together.
North Yorkshire Police Assistant Chief Constable Wayne Fox yesterday confirmed the discovery of a body in the Derwent.
He told a press conference at Fulford police station in York: ‘Today we have recovered a body in connection with the search for Victoria Taylor.
‘The police underwater search team made the discovery at 11.45am this morning in the River Derwent near to where Victoria’s items were recovered.’
Speaking today at a press conference outside York Police Station, Assistant Chief Constable Wayne Fox (Pictured) confirmed the tragic discovery of a body
A body has been found after the mother-of-one was last seen alive three weeks ago (Pictured with her brother Joe)
Victoria Taylor pictured with her husband-to-be Matthew. The father previously issued a tearful plea for her to return
Victoria Taylor with her fiance Matthew and their two-year-old daughter
Victoria Taylor was due to marry her fiancé Matthew, but they had not set a date, having just returned from their first family holiday in Majorca
Emma Worden and Heidi Baker, sisters of missing mother Victoria Taylor, 34, discussed their torment two weeks ago amid the care home nurse’s disappearance
ACC Fox added: ‘While today’s outcome is not what anyone wished for, Victoria’s family have asked me to express thanks to those who supported North Yorkshire Police and the emergency services.’
On October 4, fiancé Matthew issued a plea for the ‘dedicated’ mother to come home. Clutching their daughter, he broke down in tears as he said: ‘I hope she comes back safely.’
Staring lovingly at the child, he continued: ‘Obviously, this one is missing her mam. We are all hoping she comes back.
‘She was dedicated to her job, dedicated to us, and we had just returned from a lovely holiday. It is just sad.’
He continued: ‘As soon as we reported her missing, knowing her very well we went looking around the area where the police had been.
‘Since then, with the weather and everything, I just want to be here for this one.’
Police water search units seen scouring the river earlier on October 4
Malton town centre, where missing woman Victoria Taylor lives with her fiancé and daughter
Police searching the River Derwent in Malton using sonar equipment as they search for missing on October 7
Officers from the Police Regional Marine and Underwater Search Unit searching the river on October 7
He continued: ‘I am just heartbroken for this one. I know Vikki wanted [our daughter] to have the best opportunities in life – the opportunities she never had. It breaks my heart.’
Cuddling his daughter at the time, he sobbed: ‘We live in hope, don’t we kid. She was such a good mother to this kid and I hope she can be a good mother again.’
Last week her family said in a statement via North Yorkshire Police: ‘There are no words for us to describe how we are feeling as it’s ever-changing.
‘We have to have some sort of normality for the children. As we know, Vixx is a mum but also an auntie and Halloween is one of her favourite seasons as she is the costume queen!
‘We would like to thank the police teams as they are doing all they can, and we understand that these things take time.
‘The local community is amazing, from putting up posters to the daily walks to search for Vixx. We would like to thank the special people, you know who you are.
‘The wider community on the Facebook page with over 10,000 people sharing Vixx’s information and sending support has given us comfort. We continue to have hope, as it is all we have at this time.’
Large missing posters were put up in the town centre and along the A64 road between York and Scarborough during the three-week search.
The River Derwent in Malton, North Yorkshire where police water search units were searching for mother-of-one Victoria Taylor
Victoria’s friend previously called her an ‘inspiration’ and hailed all those who are continuing to help look for her (Pictured: A stretch of the River Derwent which is the focus of a police search)
Amateur sleuths were accused of hampering the search by peddling baseless theories online over the disappearance.
Psychics, mediums and TikTok armchair detectives have all come under fire for speculating on her whereabouts.
A North Yorkshire spokesperson said: ‘Today we have recovered a body in connection with the search for missing 34-year-old Victoria Taylor.
‘The police underwater search team made the discovery at 11.45am this morning in the River Derwent close to where Victoria’s belongings were recovered.
‘Formal identification is yet to take place, but Victoria’s family have been informed of this development and understandably they are distressed by today’s news. Our specialist family liaison officers will continue to support them.
‘Victoria who is from Norton near Malton was reported missing on Tuesday 01 October. Since the initial report was received, we have carried out extensive searches to try and locate Victoria.
Two policemen are seen searching the River Derwent in kayaks during the three week search
A police officer searches the bank of the River Derwent in a kayak
Police teams hauling kayaks over the mud near the River Derwent on October 3
A poster appealing for help to find missing woman Victoria Taylor was placed in several areas of Malton including this shop window
‘The scale of investigation undertaken by North Yorkshire Police has provided us with a detailed understanding of Victoria’s key movements within the time parameters of her disappearance.
‘As part of our strategy, we issued multiple appeals to the public and media for information. I personally would like to thank the members of the public who responded and assisted us with our enquiries.
‘The disappearance of Victoria has understandably had a wider impact on the communities of Malton and Norton. Those closest to Victoria have felt an enormous amount of heartache in the days after she went missing and have acknowledged how grateful they are for the overwhelming support from the community.
‘Whilst today’s outcome is not what anyone would have wished for, Victoria’s family have asked me to say that they are devastated and would like some space to be able to process the news, and our thoughts remain with them at this time.’
